Black-founded brands led the luxury beauty market in increased sales during Black History Month, according to data.
Circana reports that Black-founded brands grew nearly twice as fast as the overall prestige beauty market in February 2023, with dollar sales increasing 19% compared to January. This growth has accelerated over the years, with Black-founded brands outpacing other brands by 1.5 to 3 times in February 2023 compared to February 2022. Data for February 2024 is not yet available.
Key brands driving growth include Fenty Beauty, Uoma Beauty, Pat McGrath Labs, Buttah Skin, Beauty Stat, and Pattern Beauty.
Makeup analyst Natalia Vanvisa said Black-founded brands may be performing better during Black History Month due to increased visibility and support. Annual data for 2023 shows Black-founded brands grew one percentage point slower than other markets, increasing by 13% compared to 14% for prestige beauty overall.
Importantly, Sarcana’s data shows that non-Black buyers account for a significant portion of spending, and Bambiza said the inclusivity of many Black-founded brands is driving consumer spending from all walks of life. It is pointed out that this is an important selling point for consumers.
Black-founded makeup brands grew 28% in February 2023 compared to January, while similar brands grew 6%. The Black-founded fragrance brand experienced triple-digit growth during this period. Fragrance brands founded by non-Black people grew by 45%. Black-founded skin care and hair care brands recorded growth of 7% and 1%, respectively, but their brand growth was lower at 4% for skin and down 9% month over month for hair care.